


The Comeback

by citruslimon



Category: Figure Skating RPF, Olympics RPF
Genre: F/M, Slow Burn
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-04-14
Updated: 2018-04-14
Packaged: 2019-04-22 14:14:05
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,524
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14310468
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/citruslimon/pseuds/citruslimon
Summary: Tessa's known Scott for 20 years, like he's family or more like he's one of her limbs. After announcing their comeback, she starts to see him in a brand new light.The journey beginning February 2016, when Tessa and Scott announced their return to competitive skating, up till a few years after the Pyeong Chang Olympics.





	The Comeback

Tessa

It is twenty minutes before the announcement and Tessa and Scott are sitting together in a cramped red loveseat. He keeps fidgeting with the Canada Broadcasting Corporation memorabilia laid out in front of them. It peeves her a little but she doesn’t have the heart to tell her partner to stop. She has her legs crossed, back straight, and is uncharacteristically quiet before the big event, whereas she'd usually be talking his ear off to distract both of them from whatever’s looming over. Today, she’s staring off at the bookcase in front of her, but actually nothing in particular.

She doesn’t remember who germinated the idea. If one of them actually said to the other one day while touring that they missed the intensity, the anxiety, the sleeplessness, and gee, it’d be fun to inflict that stress on the both of them again. If she could turn back time, she would put that person in a chokehold this instant and probably not stop until they come to their senses or pass out.

Retirement has treated her well: she could wake up at a reasonable time every day and wear something other than work out clothes. At dinner, she would eat that extra piece of bread AND drink an extra glass of wine without feeling guilty or immediately planning how to burn off those calories. They didn’t have train almost every damn day. She actually had some spare time to date in between Stars on Ice tours and designing jewelry.

Date! She wonders, how foreign is that word is going to sound in just a few months. Before their retirement, she told herself she didn’t have any time to get to know other men and see what she likes. Skating with Scott was her entire life for more than a decade, and soon that will be true again.

It’s not like she’s giving up that much though. Meeting charming strangers and going on dates has been a lot of fun but nothing has stuck. She told her girlfriends she wants to play the field, but really she’s been looking for that fire somewhere. So far, nothing has paralleled the exhilaration she feels while soaring through the air in the rink.

Besides, if he’s by her side it doesn’t matter right? It will be worth it. It’s gotta be worth it.

Finally, Scott sets the rubik's cube down on the settee. He turns around and looks at Tessa straight in the eye, “T, I have a serious question to ask you, and I need you to be honest with me.”

“Ummmm, ok?” This is clearly not the right moment for an earnest talk, she’s already trying not to sweat through her dress.

He swirls his head around with both hands framing his face, “how does my hair look?”

She tries to roll her eyes but laughs despite herself, a real belly laugh, not the airy giggle she makes when a reporter asks an awkward question or when they’re being showered by compliments. Clearly happy to get a reaction, Scott grins widely back at her.

“Actually, you’ve got a few strays right around here,” she smooths over some unruly strands on his sides with her fingers, “all good.”

He gives her a little nudge with his elbow, “for real though, you sure you’re ready? That you want this? Feel good about it?” 

“Yeah, I’m sure.” She chuckles lightly, "ready or not, we’re already here. What would you do if I said no this second? Grab me and make a run for it?”

He shrugs and raises an eyebrow, “you know that’s not out of the question for me, I’m a total wild card.”

Tessa smirks at his ridiculous expression and pauses for a second. “I feel ok, Scott. Nervous about making a big fuss on national TV, but it feels like we’re doing the right thing.”

“Ok. Then I’m with you all the way.”

She laughs again because he said this as if she asked him to pick up milk at the grocery store, instead of upending his life once again. She feels the knot inside her stomach become undone, the laughter dissolving the tension between her shoulder blades. After years of competitions together, he is a pro at calming her down.

“What’s so funny?” 

“Oh nothing.” Tessa shakes her head. 

Scott smiles and brushes her cheek with his right hand, lingering his fingers for a moment under her chin. It's a strangely intimate gesture that he made many times times during choreographed performances, but never in real life.

Scott's touch jolts her and seems to surprise even himself, but it was as quick as it was light, leaving only a flicker of embarrassment in his eyes. Mercifully, a producer enters the greenroom at that moment. She says they were almost ready for them and asks the two of them to follow her. 

He coughs uncomfortably and stands up, “shall we, Tess?”  
She smooths over her dress, “let’s do it.” 

Standing in front of the cameras at last, Tessa becomes acutely aware of how tight the lilac pencil dress is on her, how uncomfortable her stilettos are. She keeps smoothing over the front with her moist palms. She looks over to Scott, who didn't seem to know where to keep his hands: rubbing them together then cracking his knuckles, jamming them in his pockets, hanging them off a belt loop. It’s funny, she thinks to herself, they’ve done complicated lifts and emotional routines televised to millions in sold-out stadiums together, but when it comes to interviews or press conferences, Scott still grasps for the right words. 

This wasn’t always the case. Before their retirement from competition, he was the talker of their duo. Confident (cocky), painfully earnest, and sometimes charming, he would stand between her and the reporters, fielding questions about their performance, diverting attention away from gossip or comparisons with other players, and usually sneaking in a mention of his hometown Ilderton. Tessa always winced at his unpolished country boy persona and found it endearing at the same time. She also had the inkling that, it wasn’t only that he loved to talk and brag but that he was trying to protect her from the prying questions too. She didn’t have the same relaxed manner when talking to reporters, and when forced to, she felt her already exhausted back muscles tense and detested the way her pitch became at least half an octave higher. 

But things have changed during their two seasons away. Now when they have appearances and interviews, Scott reassures Tessa before letting her take the lead. Though she can’t get herself to enjoy public appearances, she fakes it with style and poise. By contrast, Scott has become reserved, more humble, focused on work… sometimes he barely holds eye contact with reporters.

The host Scott Russell cues a sizzle reel of the pair’s performance over the years and Tessa could feel her heart hard at work in her chest. Finally, Russell says, “let’s not mince words, let’s not waste any more time. You have an announcement to make. What is it, Tessa? I’ll give you the honours.”

She puts on her best Tessa Virtue smile, “we’ve decided to return to competition and we’re so excited,” she looks over to her partner, "I don’t think that should come as a surprise to many people. We’ve still got that fire and we’re just really anxious to get back on that competitive ice.”

“Wow that is great news and I’m sure figure skating fans will be delighted to hear it.” 

Scott is a little less practiced and more shy with his answers, but he's worked with Russell enough to appear relaxed. They answer a dozen questions about their bid for Olympic gold, what it’s like working with Marie and Patch, and the move to Montreal.

The interview is over so quickly that all the anxiety Tessa felt beforehand seems incredibly silly. They shake hands with the host and his producers, change into more comfortable shoes, and exit onto Toronto’s Front Street.

Shivering side by side in frigid February weather waiting for a taxi, they could see each other’s breath in the air. Scott bumps Tessa through his puffy winter coat, “you know, I thought Marie was making too big a fuss too, making us go on TV and announce that we were coming back.”

“Yeah? But you didn’t protest or anything.” Even though she’s wearing mitts, she’s still so cold that she keeps rubbing her hands together. Or maybe it’s just residual jitters from sharing something so momentous.

“Nah, I didn’t want to fight anyone on it. I trust her instinct and thought she probably knew best.” He pauses for a few seconds, long enough that she thinks he’s done talking. “But I’m glad we did it."

“And why is that?” She looks at him with a raised eyebrow. Even though most of his face is covered up in a scarf to shield the cold, she could see the finest smile lines forming on the corners of his hazel eyes.

“Because, ready or not, it feels real now.”

She smiles back at him, “now what, Moir?”

**Author's Note:**

> I've never done this before, be gentle. The interview in this chapter was based on [this video](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=60Yw2Tcn3dM&t=163s).


End file.
